Crawl Space Insulation

Installing Crawl Space Insulation

Keep your home comfortable & energy bills low with the right insulation

Crawl spaces are shallow structures installed directly into the dirt under your home. As such, they tend to soak up the natural cold of the earth around your home and transfer it into the air in your crawl space.

If you have utilities in your crawl space such as your water heater, furnace, or hot water pipes, your energy bills will suffer. The fluctuation in temperature will force your heating and air conditioning systems to work harder, causing your energy costs to rise.

For your crawl space insulation to perform like it should, it’s essential to install the right type of insulation, the right amount of insulation, and use the correct installation technique. At Oliver, we can improve the condition of your crawl space with products that are durable, long-lasting, and made especially for the crawl space environment.

Signs of crawl space insulation problems:

During cold weather, you have to keep the heat going nearly all the time to be comfortable in rooms directly above the crawl space.

Mice or other pests have taken up residence in fiberglass insulation installed between joists in the crawl space.

Fiberglass batt insulation has fallen out of place from between floor joists in the crawl space.

The crawl space smells moldy or has visible signs of mold.

The crawl space is damp all the time.

Many homes have the wrong type of crawl space insulation

The old-fashioned way to insulate a crawl space was to install fiberglass batt insulation between joists and vent the crawl space so outside air could circulate beneath the house. Unfortunately, this combination usually leads to the problems listed above. Fiberglass insulation doesn’t respond well to the moist conditions that can be found in a crawl space. The cotton-like material absorbs moisture, gets soggy, compresses and loses R-value. Fiberglass batts often end up on the crawl space floor in a soggy mess. The main advantage of fiberglass insulation –low cost—is totally negated when the material ceases to perform its main function.

Benefits of insulating your crawl space with rigid foam

Stable and reliable. Unlike fiberglass insulation, rigid foam won’t compress, fall out of place or lose its R-value over time. It’s definitely a “once-and-done” improvement.

Effective air sealing. When joints between foam panels are taped, rigid foam stops air leaks that can waste energy. Fiberglass insulation can’t stop air movement.

Moisture-proof. Rigid foam won’t absorb moisture or be damaged by it.

Unfriendly to mold. Mold can’t take hold on rigid foam because it contains no organic food source and it doesn’t hold moisture.

Rigid foam panels outperform fiberglass in the crawl space

Rigid foam insulation performs much better than fiberglass in a crawl space. This type of insulation is manufactured in panels of different thicknesses. Installers cut the panels to fit against the interior face of crawl space foundation walls. Panels are secured with adhesive or mechanical fasteners.

Insulating a crawl space with rigid foam is often done as part of the crawl space encapsulation process –a treatment that building scientists recommend. Crawl space encapsulation will provide a sealed crawl space, separating the space from the exterior, and giving you control over the environment beneath your living space.

Although rigid foam insulation costs more than fiberglass insulation, it’s less expensive when you consider that you’ll never have to clean up or redo a mess of damaged, ineffective installation. Rigid foam will deliver the same performance and benefits in 15 years as it does on day #1.